European Commission Asks Romania to Undo Gas, Power Market Restrictions

The European Commission has asked Bucharest to remove restrictions on the pricing and export of electricity and natural gas, as well as warned Paris, Prague and Vienna over shortcomings in localizing European Union regulations on power or renewable energy.

The Commission launched infringement proceedings against Romania by sending a letter of formal notice “for restricting the freedom of market participants to determine their wholesale prices of electricity and gas as well as the export of gas”, the Commission said in a statement.

The Romanian measures that the Commission deems non-compliant require some power producers to contribute all revenues above a certain price threshold to an energy transition fund and gas producers to sell part of their output at fixed prices to certain customers.

“These national measures are incompatible with Directive (EU) 2019/944 and Regulation (EU) 2019/943 on the internal market for electricity as well as with Directive 2009/73/EC concerning common rules for the internal market on natural gas”, the EU’s executive arm said in the statement on its website.

“The Commission therefore considers that these measures restrict the fundamental principles of free price formation as well as free cross-border trade in wholesale electricity and gas markets”, it added.

Romania has two months to notify the Commission of the necessary amendments the country will make. “In the absence of a satisfactory response, the Commission may decide to issue a reasoned opinion”, the Commission said. A reasoned opinion asks the subject to comply with EU laws.

In the other infringement procedures this month, the Commission sent reasoned opinions to the Czech Republic and France accusing them of failure to transpose EU rules on the power market into their national laws. Member states had until December 2020 to adopt Directive (EU) 2019/944 on Common Rules for the Internal Market for Electricity.

The Commission had already sent letters of formal notice to Czechia and France 2022 warning they did not fully transpose the directive. “Having examined the replies from the Member States concerned as well as the national transposition measures notified, the Commission considers that these Member States have still not fully transposed the Directive”, it said in the statement.

Czechia and France have two months to take corrective action. Failure will prompt cases before the EU Court of Justice.

Another subject of a reasoned opinion sent this month, Austria, has allegedly failed to fully transpose EU rules on the promotion of renewable energy sources. The transposition deadline elapsed June 2021.

Austria had acted on a formal notice sent by the Commission 2021 but the country’s updated legislative measures still have not satisfied the Commission. “… the Commission considers that several provisions of the Directive are still not transposed, or not fully transposed, at federal and regional level”, it said.

Austria has two months to present necessary measures to the Commission. Failure risks a suit at the EU Court of Justice.

Last month the Commission warned all but one of the EU’s 27 member states “for failing to fully transpose into national law the provisions of the revised Renewable Energy Directive related to the simplification and acceleration of permitting procedures”.

Only Denmark complied by the July 2024 deadline, the Commission said in a statement September 26, 2024. The Commission may escalate proceedings by sending reasoned opinions if the other countries fail to respond within two months.

To contact the author, email jov.onsat@rigzone.com